The Golf Game
Previous episode: Tennessee Ernie Hangs On Next episode: The Sublease http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/GolfGame.jpg http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/MayIDemaret.jpg Plot Ricky and Fred have been bitten by the golf bug, ever since Lucy gave Ricky those set of golf clubs for their anniversary. It's all they ever talk about anymore, and Lucy and Ethel are feeling left out and neglected. They first pretend to take up basketball, hoping that their husbands will see how silly it is to be consumed by a sport. But when their husbands only praise the idea for helping them understand how much they love golf, the women need a new plan. Lucy says that they should just take up golf, so they could spend time with their husbands. Besides, Ricky and Fred are always complaining about how hard it is to find a foursome. Ricky and Fred are afraid that, if Lucy and Ethel end up liking golf, they'll go golfing together all the time and never get to be by themselves. So, they decide to make up their own golf rules, making the game seem so complicated and difficult that their wives won't want to keep practicing such a complex game. Lucy and Ethel naively follow all of the made-up rules, but when they find out their husbands' trick from pro golfer Jimmy Demaret, they want revenge. Jimmy Demaret agrees to help them, and he pretends to play by some of the rules Lucy and Ethel were taught in the golf tournament the next day. Ricky and Fred can't believe their eyes at first. Then, they all end up laughing at the joke. Trivia *Apparently, Jimmy Demaret was like the Tiger Woods of the '40s-'50s. He won three Masters titles back in his day. Nowadays, only huge golf fanatics have heard of him, unlike old stars from other sports (i.e. Babe Ruth). But his appearance on the show was a big deal at the time. *Back in the '50s, women's basketball uniforms looked like sailor's outfits, based off of what Lucy and Ethel wear. *A big fan of golf, Desi Arnaz relished in this episode. He also got to show off his basketball skills by perfectly sinking a basket before leaving the apartment. *While waiting for the boys to finish talking golf, Lucy and Ethel played gin. Lucy won 22 games, and Ethel won 15. *Ethel seems to have showed some good golf talent on the course. Once during the mixed-up rules game, she got a "penalty" for hitting her ball further than Fred's ball. *It took the gang a full hour-and-a-half to get to the first green. *The terms Lucy used in her imaginary golf game were real golf terms - each of which Lucy misused - with hilarious results! *Jimmy Demaret hits he golf ball normally and Lucy says "Well that was pretty dull". This implies that under the imaginary rules, it is acceptable, but frowned upon to hit a golf ball normally. *When playing golf with Jimmy Demaret, Lucy enforced the "May I" rule, but made no attempt to force Jimmy to hold the golf club according to the imaginary rules. Rules for Ricardo and Mertz Imaginary Golf *Here are the main rules of mixed-up golf that Lucy and Ethel were taught: #To determine the golfing line-up, choose up sides on a golf clubs, similar to how it is done in baseball. If playing with a foursome, the fourth one down from the top of the club goes first. With three people, the second one from the top goes first. #To choose which club to use at the beginning of a hole, check the direction of the wind. A stymie or niblick are usually the best club choices for driving in normal wind conditions. You can also choose a club by swinging all clubs in the direction of the wind and picking which one feels best. #To get the correct grip on your club, first bend over and lean the club against your chest. Then, interlock all of of your fingers and fold your thumbs underneath before putting your hands around the club. http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/ClubGrip.jpg #Place your ball on a divot (Golf Tee) when ready to first hit it. #Always remember to ask, "May I?" before you make your first stroke on a hole. Failing to do so will result in a penalty where you lose 10 points and have to hit the ball on your next stroke after you take a giant step forward with your right leg only. http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/MayIPenalty.jpg #When trying to hit the ball, always keep your eyes on the fairway, never on the ball itself. #If you fail to hit the ball after your first three strokes, you must then perform a dormie. This is accomplished by picking up the ball and throwing it under your left leg. http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/Dormie.jpg #A stymie is the most basic stroke used. This is the one used when a person first tries to hit a ball on a particular hole, after first asking "May I?" http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/Stymie.jpg #You must NEVER perform a normal stymie after your partner has dormied! This is a major offense, and doing so may result in you being thrown off the golf course entirely. To avoid this cardinal error, you must salute and ask permission to shoot out a turn and perform a birdie. This is a stroke where you flap your arms like wings and whistle before hitting the ball. http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/Birdie.jpg #If you miss the ball while performing a birdie, you must kick the ball before another player counts to 10. Failing to do so will make you disqualified from the rest of the game. #If somebody kicks the ball before you count to 10 (after a failed attempt at a birdie), you will be punished by not being allowed to play during that hole. #If your ball goes farther than the third player's ball, you win that part of the hole and are rewarded by getting to carry all of the bags. #Always remember the potential value of the leapfrog maneuver to get to the green. #At the green, all players try to putt their ball into the cup at once, while also trying to stop others from sinking their balls. This is why Imaginary Golf is said to be so much like hockey. Whoever gets their ball in the cup first wins, and is rewarded by getting to carry all the bags. #NEVER touch your ball, unless it's a dormie! Doing so will cause you to be penalized with a mashie, in which one of the players will step on the golf ball and mashie it into the Earth. http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/Mashie.jpg #A possible penalty for hitting your ball farther than another player is being forced to hop on one foot while rubbing your stomach with one hand and patting your head with your other hand. #Remember to use the advantageous hop-skip-and-the-jump shot when you're between 47 and 63 yards from the green. http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/HopSkipJump.jpg #Experienced players usually don't perform regular stymies when they start a hole. Instead, they tend to use the advanced technique of an over-the-shoulder, left-handed whirling stymie. #You will lose 10 points if your ball misses the sandtrap and lands directly on the green. #Another possible first stroke to use, besides a normal stymie, is to take three giant steps and kick the bogie. Quotes *Lucy: Marriage sure does strange things to a man. This is the same man who used to say, "Who cares about the pictuer? Let's just sit in the balcony and smooch." Ricky: Never mind! Ethel: I know just how you feel, Lucy. Fred: Oh, now, Ethel! Ethel: It's true, Fred. It's been years since we sat in a movie with your arm around my waist. Fred: It's been years since my arm reached around your waist! *Lucy: Well, we could fight hobby with hobby. We could get interested in something and drive them crazy. Ethel: Good! Lucy: Now, what'll it be? Ethel: How 'bout men? *Ethel: We'll make a foursome! Lucy: I have an idea this is one time two and two will not make four. *Ricky: You can't play golf with us! Fred: No! Lucy: Why not? Ricky: Well, uh... Why not, Fred? Fred: It's against the law? *Ricky: Well, it only took us one hour-and-a-half to get to the first green. Fred: Well, that ought to be some kind of a record. Ricky: I would say so, yeah. *Ethel: Well, how many strokes did you take on that 4th hole? Lucy: Six. Ethel: Lucy! Lucy: Well, 26- what's the difference? How many did you take? Ethel: 30. I'll just put down "7" for each of us. *Ethel: (about putting) Do we all go at once? Ricky: Uh, yeah! Fred: That's why they say this game's so much like hockey! *Lucy: (to Jimmy Demaret) Uh-uh-uh! You didn't say "may I"! Demaret: "May I"?! Lucy: Too late now. Ethel: That's cost you 10 points! Lucy: Yeah, with all of your experience, I'm surprised at you. *Lucy: There's a rotten Cuban in Denmark! Ethel: And he's got a fat friend! *Ethel: Imagine! Us playing leapfrog out there! Lucy: A hundred people watching us! *Ricky: (praying before playing with Jimmy Demaret) Oh, please, please! Just let me hit the ball! I don't care where it goes! Just let me hit it! *Ricky: Do you know who we're playing with? Lucy: Who? Ricky: Jimmy Demaret. Lucy: Jimmy Demaret?! Who's he? *Jimmy Demaret: (ready to hit ball; snaps his fingers, in remembrance, at Lucy) May I? (Lucy nods her head with pleasure, allowing Jimmy Demaret to do hop-skip-and-jump shot)﻿